Member of Advisory Committees, Expert and Eminent Persons Groups

Education

Economics

Honorary Doctorate

Dr. Devaki Jain is a development economist and activist.She graduated in Economics from Oxford in 1963 and taught at Delhi University for 6 years.
Since then, her academic research and advocacy, influenced largely by Gandhian Philosophy, have focussed on issues of equity, democratic decentralisation, people centred development and women's rights.
Throughout her career, she has bridged academic and policy-oriented work.

She was one of the founders of a wide range of institutions such as Development Alternatives for Women for a new Era (DAWN) - a third world network of women social scientists who provided an alternative framework for understanding the location of advancing the cause of poor women of the South.
Indian Association of Women's Studies (IAWS), Kali, Feminist Publishing House and Institute of Social Studies Trust (ISST) - a research centre in Delhi where she was Director until 1994.

She is one of the two women awarded the Bradford Morse Memorial Award by the United Nations at the World Conference at Beijing for outstanding achievements through professional and voluntary activities in promoting the advancement of women and gender equality for 20 years.

At the Central Planning Commission, she has been a member of the group set up to draft the Women's Development Chapter.She was an Adviser and Convenor of Expert group on Economic Affairs at the National Commission for Women.

Mahnaz Afkhami (Iran) & Devaki Jain (India), a Founding Member of Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era; Azza Karam (Egypt), Director of the Women's Program at Religions for Peace; Huguette Labelle (Canada), former President of the Canadian International Development Agency.

Conversation with Devaki JainSt Anne's College, Oxford > About the College > Conversation with Devaki Jain

St Anne's College, Oxford: Shield

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Devaki Jain, alumna and Plumer Visiting Fellow at St Anne's College, is a practicing economist and feminist.She is the Founder and former Director of the Institute of Social Studies Trust based in New Delhi, India.She was previously a lecturer at the University of Delhi, founding member of Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era (DAWN), Senior Fellow of the Delhi Policy Group, and member of the South Commission chaired by Julius Nyerere.

In 2006, Dr Jain was presented with the Padma Bhushan Award for exceptional and distinguished service.
She has also published several books and articles on Indian development and women's status.

Devaki Jain (1933- ) moved from being a lecturer in economics at Delhi University to found The Institute of Social Studies Trust that pioneered analysis of gender in poverty.
In 1984 she convened the first meeting of third-world women social scientists and activists in Bangalore that led to the founding of Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era.
She has been a member of advisory committees, expert and eminent persons groups for such UN organizations as UNIFEM, WHO, FAO, ILO, UNESCO, UNICEF, UNDP, and UNFPA as well as for national committees in preparation for the UN world conferences on women.She was born in India and educated there at the Mysore University and in the UK at Oxford University.Her many publications include the book for the UNIHP series, Women, Development, and the UN: A Sixty-Year Quest for Equality and Social Justice.